Are you ready for 2020 yet? Because the bad ballot measures are already festering.
According to the Secretary of State, a ballot measure is in the early stages of being prepared which rolls back protections against the unscrupulous and skeezy petition circulators we’ve seen in recent years
But far worse than that, the proposed measure is also set to cripple an important informational law that’s been on the books for nearly a decade – and is set to limit the information available to the public about ballot measures at both the signature stage as well as at the ballot box:
2020 hidden information ballot measure by Pat Powers on Scribd
The measure, submitted for LRC comment by liberal activist and defeated State Senate Cory Heidelberger, is set to have a chilling effect on the amount of information available to voter at the time they are asked to consider signing ballot measure petitions, AND in the voting booth.
In addition to limiting the ability to challenge signatures collected questionably, this anti-information measure directly attacks voters who are seeking information about what they’re being asked to sign and forcibly removes the requirement under state law that the the Attorney General write an “objective, clear, and simple summary to educate the voters of the purpose and effect of the proposed initiated measure or initiated amendment to the Constitution.”
By eliminating the provision, the measure further strikes against voters by withdrawing basic ballot measure information which had been provided both at the time of signature, as well as eliminating this same explanation and fiscal notes showing the financial effect of the legislation from being provided as part of the election ballot.
This is a severe disconnect from the spirit of open government and an informed electorate.
I’m not sure why Heidelberger feels that voters needs less objective information at the time of signature and at the ballot box. It’s going to be a hard sell to the electorate explain why voters should support a measure that wants to deny them information what a ballot measure is actually about.
If anything, based on recent legislative studies, state government should be doing everything it can to get more information into the hands of the public. Instead of hindering it. Or worse yet, as proposed by this measure, hiding it.
But then again.. Liberals will do what they have to do to slip one under the noses of voters.
Which apparently involves withholding information from the people they want to sign petitions… and later vote on it.
Cory has two things working against him heading out the gate. First, people are smarter with regard to signing anything. Second, is simply the name Heidelberger!
What a wiener Hamburglar is. For a left-wing nut job he sure doesn’t believe in transparency-oh, wait! That is because the left as a whole claims to value transparency but is anything but! Look at Obummer; he claimed he would have the most transparent administration in history, but it was as opaque as granite. But then lying came as easily as breathing to Obummer.
I will never sign another petition for these ballot measures. I was flat out lied to about them on the 2 times I did sign and later voted against..
Correction……And TWICE defeated state senate candidate
Will he come back for a 3rd time?
He couldn’t even win a spot on the Madison Central School board when he ran for that, how does he expect to win at anything bigger? I do have two suggestions to increase his chances of winning at soemthing.
1 – Tie your hands behind your back when speaking!
2 – Quit talking! (that solves #1 above)
3 – Quit being an Adult Bully (and I use the word Adult loosely).
The only thing you live for is to make fun of and tear other people down!